The Recreation Assistant is assigned to Whole Health (WH) and serves within the Well-Being Program and Employee Whole Health Program. The employee serves on a team of wellness instructors leading Complementary and Integrative Health practices to promote, restore, and preserve the health and wellbeing of Veterans and VA Medical Center employees.

Duties

***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION*** Major duties and responsibilities include: Developing, planning, organizing, implementing, conducting, monitoring, and evaluating a wide variety of self-directed, participatory, wellness and recreation programs for Veterans and employees. Instructing, demonstrating, providing information and assistance to the veterans, encouraging participation, publicizing and arranging special events, setting up areas for scheduled activities, and adapting programs to safely meet the needs and interests of patients with varying abilities, skills, and levels of disability. Coordinating and assisting in implementing well-being and Comprehensive and Integrative Health (CIH) programming elements such as (but not limited to) Tai Chi, yoga, iRest, mindfulness/meditation, healing labyrinth walks, creative writing, expressive arts, gardening, dance, and therapeutic use of music/sound. Leading well-being classes/instruction, either group or individual, for the purpose of promoting, preserving, or restoring health and well-being. Coordinating with other staff members concerning the use of VA facilities for activities and develops and maintains a calendar of programs and activities. Working independently when addressing a variety of administrative problems or situations related to Well- Being and Employee Whole Health activities. Recording attendance at classes in medical records, noting any precautions or clinically relevant outcomes. Compiling, preparing, and submitting records, reports and requests concerning participation, material and equipment purchases, and inventories. Performing other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday-Tuesday 7:30am-4:00pm, Wednesday-Thursday 11:00am-7:30pm, Friday 7:30am-4:00pm, Saturday-Sunday 8:00am-4:30pm; Tour of Duty will be 40 hours per week with some weekend and/or evenings required (Subject to change based on needs of facility) Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required Telework: VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.

Requirements

Qualifications

IN ORDER TO QUALIFY FOR THIS POSITION AT THE GS-6 LEVEL YOU MUST MEET THE FOLLOWING: DRIVER'S LICENSE REQUIREMENT: This position requires a current, valid state driver's license. Please indicate either Yes or No to the following question and do not upload a copy of your license at this time. If an interview is requested, you may be required to provide a copy of your current, valid, and unrestricted state driver's license. ~AND~ SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: You must possess 1 year of specialized experience, equivalent to the GS-5 level in the Federal service, that equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA's) needed to successfully perform the duties of the position and that is typically in or related to this Recreation Assistant position to be filled. Specialized experience for the position includes serving as a group leader, counselor, or similar work in public and private recreation programs for adults or children such as summer camps, local playgrounds, YWCA and YMCA clubs, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, urban community centers, or resort recreational activities; Teacher's Aid in elementary school recreation or physical education program, with emphasis on development of general recreational skills and abilities; Aid or assistant assignments in recreation while on active military service; Aid or assistant in the organization and administration of recreation activities, such as preparing activities calendars, maintaining attendance records, and providing information concerning schedules and activities. ADDITIONAL SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE INCLUDES: Coordinating and assisting in implementing well-being and Complementary and Integrative Health (CIH) programming elements such as (but not limited to) Tai Chi, yoga, iRest, mindfulness/meditation, healing labyrinth walks, creative writing, expressive arts, gardening, dance, and therapeutic use of music/sound; experience leading recreational activities such as gardening, sports, and/or music/art); experience leading well-being classes/instruction for groups or individual; assisting in the organization and administration of recreation activities, such as preparing activities calendars, maintaining attendance records, and providing information concerning schedules and activities. (THIS EXPERIENCE MUST BE SUPPORTED BY YOUR RESUME TO BE CREDITABLE.) ~OR~ SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE: You must have successfully completed one-half year of graduate level education (9 semester hours or equivalent) with a major that included courses directly related to the work of this position filled. (COPY OF TRANSCRIPTS ARE REQUIRED AT TIME OF APPLICATION) ~OR~ COMBINATION OF EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION: You must possess equivalent combinations of successfully completed graduate level education and specialized experience to meet total qualification requirements at the GS-6 level. (THIS EXPERIENCE MUST BE SUPPORTED BY YOUR RESUME TO BE CREDITABLE AND COPY OF TRANSCRIPTS ARE REQUIRED AT TIME OF APPLICATION) You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: ClericalCommunicationsDeveloping OthersPatient CareTechnical Competence IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Physical Requirements: In some assignments the work involves regular and recurring physical exertion such as prolonged walking or standing, bending, moderately heavy lifting or moving of equipment, positioning severely disabled patients and assisting patients in ambulation and with wheelchair mobility. The work requires specific, common physical characteristics and abilities, such as above average agility and dexterity, as well as skill and ability in recreational/wellness/CIH activities, maneuvering wheelchairs, and driving wheelchair-accessible vehicles. The work is primarily very active in nature with some sedentary work involved when performing administrative tasks. The work involves irregular tours of duty. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

NOTE: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address Michael E DeBakey VA Medical Center 2002 Holcombe Boulevard Houston, TX 77030 US
• Name: VHA National Recruitment Center
• Phone: (844)456-5208
• Email: [email protected]